Also, with regard to the Empire State Building vs. the new World Trade Center, it wasn't so much regulation of the construction itself that caused the delay of the latter, as it was pre-construction review and permitting requirements. Once construction began, the building went up quite quickly, DESPITE--not because of--the more advanced construction techniques used (which are actually more complex and time consuming than old-fashioned steel frame and concrete). From time the cornerstone was laid, to the time the building was actually complete, there isn't much to distinguish the two.

Stossel, while you are correct in general, you need to get your facts straight. For instance, the Accela train's speed is limited not by its weight--it is indeed capable of running at 150mph or more--but by its track, which it has to share with older, slower trains. High speed rail requires special track beds, with continuously welded rails, banked turns and other requirements. The AMTRAK corridor runs both Accela and ordinary passenger trains on the same rails also used for freight trains.
Unlike Europe, the U.S. railway system is optimized for freight--most of our goods are moved by rail, while in Europe, where distances are shorter, they are moved by truck. Freight trains are high density, high latency, meaning that they don't carry a lot, but being on time is not so important. In contrast, passenger rail is low density, low latency--each train carry a relatively small payload, but it must arrive on time.
This is a choice THE MARKET, not regulators, have made. Given the distances in the U.S., high-speed inter-city rail is just not economical, and nothing will make it more economical as compared to busses, airplanes, or private cars. If the market were left to operate unimpeded, inter-city rail would disappear, except perhaps along some very specific routes. Only political intervention in the market, and a protected government monopoly, keeps AMTRAK in business.

It seems to me that if a quid pro quo was involved, there was an awful lot of quid in response to little or no quo. What, precisely, did Williams get from the McDonnells? Next to nothing, it seems.
Let us remember that the Roman Republic's fall, and the subsequent rise of autocracy, was driven largely by the criminalization of politics. Which is precisely what we see here.

I was raised Jewish, am now a Melkite Greek Catholic, and frequently worship in Eastern Orthodox Churches, where according to tradition the congregation is also separated--men on the right side of the aisle, women on the left. This is still the general rule in Europe, and it goes back to the fifth century, when St. John Chrysostom had the sexes segregated and a barrier erected to keep them apart during the liturgy, because of the scandalous behavior he noticed going on throughout the services.

It also means that most of her family and friends will shun her, she will be cut off from the community that has helped raise and support her, and that she is also cut off from the spiritual home that nurtures her.

SOME Orthodox Jewish women are happy. Others are miserable, particularly those stuck in an abusive marriage who cannot escape until and unless they receive a "get" from a rabbinical court, many of which are highly biased against women, if not entirely corrupt. If your that Orthodox woman, then no, you are not at all happy.